


There's Something Wrong With Wild

by StardustAndAsh



Series: Wild Life [5]
Category: Linked Universe - Fandom, The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Linked Universe, Memory Issues, Memory Loss, mute!Wild
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-04
Updated: 2020-05-04
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:41:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,416
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24009043
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StardustAndAsh/pseuds/StardustAndAsh
Summary: They noticed it in stages. Slowly. it didn’t always happen, and sometimes it was hard to even really notice. There was something wrong with their newest member. Sure, he was a strong fighter and quick to help anyone when needed. It wasn’t that. It was when he paused too long and stared into the middle distance, or when he suddenly stopped signing in the middle of a word.There was something wrong with Wild.Or, moments the others noticed Wild's memory issues, and the one time Wild told them about it himself.
Series: Wild Life [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1642186
Comments: 29
Kudos: 771





	There's Something Wrong With Wild

**Author's Note:**

> This story references heavily from other works in the series, if you haven't read those, you may get confused.

They noticed it in stages. Slowly. it didn’t always happen, and sometimes it was hard to even really notice. There was something wrong with their newest member. Sure, he was a strong fighter and quick to help anyone when needed. It wasn’t that, nor was it his cooking skills. They didn’t even mind his tendency to try and take the blame for everything or when he rushed headfirst into trouble. It was when he paused too long and stared into the middle distance, or when he suddenly stopped signing in the middle of a word.

There was something wrong with Wild.

They had noticed it almost as soon as they met Wild. The way he flinched and grabbed Legend was weird, but not far from the realm of things they usually dealt with. It was the dead-eyed stare when he called Time Sir that kept circulating through their thoughts. It hadn’t been the last time either.

They had been wandering through Legend’s Hyrule when they had come across a group of black-blooded moblins. Time had quickly taken charge of the moment, before any one of the others could do something reckless.

“Wild, Legend, Hyrule, bows to keep them pinned. Sky and Warriors, you’ll be with me as the main attack, and Wind, Four, and Twilight will surprise them from the back,” said Time quietly, trying his best to put on his command voice.

The others nodded, except for Wild. He snapped a quick salute to Time and marched to where Time had gestured he go with a posture stiffer than a sword, shoulders thrown back and head held high. Nothing like the stealthy figure they’d all seen climbing up trees and sneaking up on their enemies before.

“That was weird,” said Four.

“I thought I was the only soldier here,” said Warriors pensively, looking off after Wild.

“Yeah, yeah, kid’s acting strange. Whatever. Can we go kill the moblins now?” grumbled Legend, gesturing with an arrow at the moblin camp.

Time nodded. “Moblins first. We can talk to Wild after and ask what’s wrong.”

The ensuing fight was long and difficult. The moblins put up quite a fight and Four took a solid blow to the head that knocked him out cold until the Hyrule produced a fairy from a pocket after the last moblin was killed. In the wake of battle they all forgot Wild’s odd behaviour. He was back to being his usual shy, caring self and offered to make a hearty dinner to help Four recover.

It was not the last time they noticed something strange with Wild. No, in fact, it was only the beginning.

It was Sky who noticed Wild’s oddness next.

Setting up camp while Wild cooked and the others were off doing who knows what was not a new thing for Sky. It had actually become quite common over the few weeks since Wild had joined them. Setting up camp meant Sky got to take a quick nap before dinner, so he was happy to let the others do their thing. Their thing often involved running drills with Warriors or trying to catch lizards, and Sky definitely would rather get a few minutes of sleep than do either of those.

With camp made and the others off to do Goddess knows what, Sky was leaning against a tree, nestled comfortably between its roots when he noticed something odd. There wasn’t the familiar rhythmic sounds of Wild preparing dinner to lull him to sleep. He cracked one eye back open and found the unexpected sight of Wild looking down at his ingredients with a knife in hand and a lost expression.

“Wild?” Sky said gently.

There was no response. Wild kept looking down at the vegetables in front of him like he’d never seen them before. With a sigh and far too much effort Sky pushed himself out of his lovely tree nook and walked over. There wasn’t so much as a twitch from Wild as he approached and crouched down next to him.

“Wild? Can you hear me?” asked Sky.

Now that he was closer, Sky could see that Wild’s lips were moving slightly, like he was having a whispered conversation with someone only he could see. Not for the first time, Sky wondered what Wild’s voice must have sounded like before the scars twisting around his neck had cut it off forever.

“I’m going to touch you, okay? You need to give me the knife,” said Sky slowly. He reached out gently and ghosted his fingers along Wild’s hand holding the knife. The last thing they needed was for Wild to accidentally hurt himself or someone else.

Sky was expecting a big reaction. For Wild to lash out and attack or jump and run. He was not expecting the gentle compliance of Wild dropping the knife into his hand. With his free hand Sky reached out and rested it on Wild’s shoulder.

“Can you hear me? You can nod yes or no.”

Sky added a little shake for good measure. It seemed to do the trick, as Wild blinked, his eyes losing that lost, vacant look and finding focus once again. He looked at Sky, brows drawing together in confusion as his eyes flicked down to the knife in Sky’s hand.

“You back with me?” asked Sky, feeling the knot of tension pulling loose as Wild looked at him and nodded.

 _“Didn’t go anywhere,”_ Wild signed at him. _“Can I have my knife back? Hard to make dinner without it.”_

Sky handed it over. He wanted to press a little, make sure that Wild was okay, but the sound of the others returning distracted them both. Soon enough Wind and Hyrule were bounding up to Wild and insisting they help with taste testing dinner. Sky lost his opening to ask questions as the two of them chatted away happily at Wild. But he resolved to bring whatever had just happened up to Time at the next opportunity.

For Wind, Hyrule, and Four, they noticed when Wild took a swan dive off a bridge. They had been playing at the edge of a river in Twilight’s Hyrule when Wild had walked to a bridge with a strangely blank expression on his face before climbing up on the rail and jumping into the swift current in one smooth motion. Wild had been sick for a week afterwards and the three of them became constants at his side, too worried to let him out of their sight.

Really, that last one, along with Wild’s reasoning for leaping into the water, had everyone aware that something was up with the hero. They all became more aware of his odd movements, the way he would sometimes stop and stare into space for a few minutes, having no warning before he suddenly changed his demeanor from shy and curious to stoic and disciplined.

Legend didn’t want to get involved with Wild or his strange eccentricities. Hell, the kid had tried to kill him the day they met, and that kind of thing can really sour a relationship. He’d done his best to avoid directly interacting with Wild, but made sure to keep observing him. Just in case Wild decided to turn on them. Legend also studied sign diligently. After all, one must understand their enemies in order to defeat them.

At least, that’s what he told himself.

It came as no surprise then when the group was walking through Four’s Hyrule, no one but Legend noticed when Wild started lagging behind, fiddling with his weird Sheika tablet thing. Legend drifted behind as well, trying to keep an eye on both Wild and everyone else.

“Hey, what’s so interesting back there?” drawled Legend, raising his voice a little in hopes one of the others would notice and deal with Wild instead. Preferably Twilight, as he seemed particularly fond of their newest member.

Wild’s head shot up in surprise, before glancing around in confusion. Apparently he hadn’t noticed that he’d fallen so far behind. To Legend’s disappointment, none of the others came running to fuss over Wild and let him slip away.

With a sigh, Legend resigned himself to dealing with whatever weirdness Wild was going to throw at him and hoped it wasn’t going to take particularly long. He walked up to Wild, boots stomping into the dirt path a bit harder than necessary and stood in front of him with crossed arms.

“Everyone else is getting miles ahead of us. So either tell me what’s wrong or put the Sheika tablet away and deal with it later,” said Legend shortly.

Wild blinked at him with those big baby blues. _“It’s called the Sheika slate.”_

“I don’t care what it’s called, I just don’t want to lose our best chef because he was distracted by his toy and got eaten by a lynel.”

Wild bit his lip and glanced down at the slate in his hands before looking back up at Legend. He seemed to reach some kind of decision because he turned the slate around so Legend could see the picture on the screen.

It wasn’t the first picture Wild had shown using the slate. He’d taken at least one every single day, sometimes of the scenery in a new Hyrule, or of the others in quiet moments. This one felt different. It was a picture of a horse. Or rather, a horse statue. It was reared up on its hind legs and placed upon a pedestal. The sun was setting in the background, lighting up the distant mountains in shades of red. Other than the fact that it was a rather nice picture, Legend didn’t see what was all that special about it. He glanced up to tell Wild as much when he hesitated at seeing how much hope was written on his face.

 _“Do you recognize it?”_ signed Wild.

Legend glanced down again. Was it somewhere they had been? He didn’t remember it at all. It didn’t even strike a chord with him from his own journeys.

“Nope,” replied Legend.

The hope vanished from Wild like a candle being snuffed out. Legend stiffened. Though he didn’t care about Wild or his odd questions, he didn’t want to be the reason Wild was upset. After all, he could decide that the best way to deal with what upset him was a knife to the back or something. With a huff Legend pushed the slate back at Wild.

“Didn’t you capture it anyway?” asked Legend. “You forget already?”

Wild’s hands gripped the Sheika slate tight enough his knuckles went white and his lips disappeared into a thin line. One hand came off the slate like an invisible force prised it off finger by finger.

 _“I didn’t capture this picture,”_ signed Wild. _“It’s one of Zelda’s.”_

Oh.

Legend felt his stomach drop out through his knees. One thing they all knew about Wild was that he spent a lot of time asking the others about their adventures and friends, and spent very little time telling them about his own. The only thing Legend really knew about his Zelda was that she was trapped in the Calamity, and that Wild hadn’t seen her for a very long time.

 _“I’m trying to find all the places in her pictures. Stand where she did. It helps me feel close to her,”_ signed Wild. He was staring resolutely down past Legend’s shoulder as he signed.

In a way, Legend could understand. There were places he’d go when he wanted to remember lost friends in his own Hyrule. Special items he held onto with great care not because of their value but because of whose hands had placed them in his own.

“You know we’re in Four’s Hyrule, right?” asked Legend in an attempt to try and dig himself out of those thoughts.

 _“I thought maybe, if I could find it here, I could know the area it would be in my Hyrule_ ,” signed Wild. _“Things don’t always look the same as the pictures anymore.”_

Legend had only seen a bit of Wild’s Hyrule but understood what he meant immediately. There were so many ruins, both ancient and new, littered across its massive landscape.

“I’ll keep an eye out for you, but I make no promises. It might be something only in your world. Either way, we should catch up with the others.”

Wild nodded with a shy smile before clipping the slate back to his belt. A flush of heat rose in Legend’s cheeks and he turned away, nose in the air and started walking.

“It’s not because I want to help you. I just don’t want us to lose the only decent cook in the party,” grumbled Legend as he walked away. There was an odd, breathy sort of laugh from Wild, but Legend could hear him following behind.

Wild, on his part, knew there was something wrong with him. He had always known, as far back as he knew. Waking up in the shrine, the first thing he ever knew was the sight of dim blue light and cold stone. The second was that he didn’t know anything else. He learned that the Shrine of Resurrection had stolen his memories, but from the way Impa spoke and the looks Purah shot him on occasion Wild knew there was more to it than it simply wiping his memory clean.

Maybe when he died he had been worse off. Maybe he’d been hit in the head. Either way, it didn’t change the fact that sometimes it was hard to remember where he was, or what he was doing. Sometimes a memory would come upon Wild so suddenly he was left breathless in its wake and desperately trying to imprint those fleeting details into his memory. Sometimes they would so completely overwhelm him it was like he was back in the past, living the moment once again.

It had been easier to ignore when he travelled alone. There was no one to point out when Wild froze for hours as he remembered something, or to notice when he lost track of where he was. Granted, he hadn’t tried to jump off a bridge in his own Hyrule thinking it was somewhere else, but he had definitely woken up in the Gerudo desert and panicked thinking he was on Death Mountain.

Wild wasn’t sure how to tell the others about his missing memory. In a sense, it added to his feelings of failure. It was a permanent reminder, ironically enough, that he had failed his Hyrule, Zelda, and his friends. So far, the others hadn’t asked, but Wild figured it was only a matter of time.

They were camped for the night in a cozy copse of trees. The branches were thin enough that the moon peeked through and gave them a bit more light on top of their fire. For once, they were all awake deep into the night. There was a jovial, relaxed air in the camp that Wild found himself relishing. He was happy to listen as the others traded fun stories of their lives before their adventures.

“There was this one time at the academy,” started Sky as Warriors finished a tale of wooing some beautiful lady before she ‘used her feminine wiles’ to cheat him out of his purse.

“Ugh, Sky, come on, you could at least pick something exciting,” grumbled Legend.

“How do you know it’s not going to be exciting?” asked Sky.

“Because it’s about school!” piped up Wind.

“There’s plenty of things you can get up to at school,” said Warriors with a wink. Wild shuddered at what Warriors might be thinking about.

“See,” said Sky, gesturing at Warriors, “he agrees with me.”

“I think what you consider fun and what Warriors considers fun are very different interpretations of the word,” said Twilight from where he leaned against a log with his fingers laved behind his head.

“You guys are mean,” Sky pouted, but broke into his characteristic gentle smile.

“Come on then, tell us what happened at your fancy school,” said Four. He tossed a pebble into the fire as he spoke.

Sky shot him a thankful look before leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees. He was definitely going for the dramatic approach, and Wild wasn’t sure if it was working out for him or not. He wasn’t really big enough, or had enough presence to lend the posture anything more than looking like he was hunched over and tired, but the others quieted down and listened.

“So, this one time at the academy, Zelda thought it would be great if we stole a bunch of desserts from the cafeteria and spent the afternoon somewhere pretty and ate them all. Of course, it went wrong almost straightaway. We both snuck out of class and made it to the cafeteria, but the lunch lady was there.

“I tried sneaking around her while Zelda distracted her. I could see the desserts on the counter. Dozens of puddings, all lined up for the taking.”

“Oh, I can see where this is going,” interrupted Legend.

“Shush,” said Time. Legend stuck his tongue out at him.

“Ok, so I’m trying to sneak past the lunch lady, who’s now trying to lecture Zelda on why she shouldn’t be skipping class, when my foot slides out from under me. I never got the full reason why. Floor could’ve been wet or there might have been a rag. It doesn’t really matter I guess, because I reached out for the nearest surface to try and steady myself, and instead my hand hit one of the pudding trays.

“They went flying through the air. A dozen golden angels making their last flight, arcing above me as I landed flat on my butt. The noise of the tray hitting the ground was only outdone by the shattering glass,” said Sky. Wild was starting to get the feeling that while Sky didn’t have too much physical presence, he could definitely tell an entertaining story.

“I was dripping in pudding, dripping. Luckily the glass hadn’t cut me to ribbons. And you know what Zelda did?” asked Sky.

“What did she do?” asked Hyrule, enthralled by the story.

“She left me to face the lunch lady’s wrath all by myself! I had to stand there covered in pudding for an hour while she yelled at me. Zelda just ran straight to her loftwing and spend the afternoon flying. I was so mad, but then she made us a cake to share the very next day. Sometimes she still calls me Pudding when she wants to tease me,” Sky trailed off, a dreamy look on his face.

A few of the others around the fire shared a soft smile, no doubt thinking of the ones who held their own hearts. Wild let their happiness pull him away from the dark direction his thoughts liked to go in.

“Still kind of boring. Hey Wild, think you can do better?” asked Legend, the challenge clear in his voice.

Wild froze as eight pairs of eyes landed on him. He tugged at the hood of his cape, debating whether he could flip it up and hide until they forgot about him.

“Yeah! I bet you have a bunch of stories,” said Wind excitedly. He shuffled closer to Wild, ready for what the hero might sign to them.

Wild’s hands raised in the air and hesitated. How could he tell them he didn’t _know_. Sure, he had a handful of memories from before he was killed, but they all had to do with preparing to face the Calamity. Before that, there was nothing.

Except all of them were looking at him expectantly. Wild desperately tried to think up a fun story he could pretend happened, but all of the ones that flashed through his mind sounded exactly like what the others had just told. Icy fear dripped over Wild as he came to a decision.

 _“I don’t remember,”_ he signed with shaky fingers.

“What do you mean you don’t remember?” asked Four. “Were you that young when you started your adventures?”

Wild shook his head, letting his bangs hang in front of his eyes. Another arbitrary barrier between him and the others’ gaze. He took a deep breath and explained.

 _“When I was,”_ Wild hesitated, _“injured, the only way to heal me had not been tested. It was Sheika tech, like the slate. It took my memories.”_

He kept it short, not willing to explain that he had died, that it had taken him a hundred years to wake up, that the destruction was all because he wasn’t strong enough to defeat even the Calamity’s servants.

Wild could feel the weight of their eyes where they stared at his scars. The silence around the camp was worse than if they had started asking a million questions all at once. Wild dropped his hands to his lap and clenched them hard enough that his nails dug deep into his palms.

A warm hand covered his own and gently prised his fists open. Wild looked up to see Twilight crouched in front of him, and over his shoulder seven worried faces. Wild snatched his hand back, but didn’t clench them shut again. Twilight let him do it without resistance. 

“You really don’t remember anything from before you got your scars?” asked Twilight gently.

Wild shook his head. _“Sometimes I remember bits and pieces, but only things that happened while training to defeat the Calamity. Nothing from before.”_

“Oh Cub,” said Twilight sadly.

There was nothing Wild could do but shrug in response. He was only halfway through the motion when Wind ducked past Twilight and wrapped him in a hug. Wild froze, as did the others. His first instinct was to shove Wind away, but he had to admit, it felt kind of nice. When there was no violent reaction, his other side was immediately latched on to by Hyrule.

“The Korok circle…” said Time thoughtfully.

“What about Koroks?” asked Wind. His voice was slightly muffled from where his face was pressed into Wild’s shoulder.

Time fixed Wild with an inquisitive stare. “Back in Twilight’s Hyrule, you jumped into the water and said you saw a Korok circle, something from your own Hyrule.”

Wild nodded. _“I forgot I was with you.”_

“Hey, that mean your brain is permanently scrambled?” asked Legend. This was followed by a yelp as Four smacked him on the shoulder.

Wild extricated himself from the cage of hugs, raised one hand and tilted it from side to side in a gesture of maybe.

“That would explain a few things,” said Sky thoughtfully, one finger drumming at his chin.

Everyone turned to Sky as he spoke. Usually he hated Legend’s bullying.

“What?” said Sky, noticing all the stares. “It would explain a few things.”

“Like jumping into a raging river,” said Legend.

“Or zoning out for longer than normal,” added Sky.

 _“I’m right here,”_ signed Wild, but he couldn’t help feeling like his heart was beating in his throat. Would the others not want to be around him now they knew he was broken? He’d only just begun to warm up to them, and now they were going to leave him behind.

“Guess we’re just going to have to keep an eye on you then. Make sure you don’t go jumping into any more dangerous places,” said Warriors with a thoughtful hum.

Four looked thoughtful. “Is there anything we can do, when you forget?”

Wild shrugged. He had no idea if there was anything they could do. Other than maybe stopping him from jumping into more rivers in unfamiliar Hyrules.

“So we’ll learn as we go,” said Twilight.

“Don’t worry Wild, We’ll figure it out together,” said Hyrule.

Wild felt a warmth blossom in his chest. They weren’t going to leave him. A small smile played at the corners of his lips.

“Now, anyone want to hear about the time Malon carried a cow on her shoulders all the way from her farm to my village?” said Time, drawing attention away from Wild.

The others let their attention be drawn away by Time’s story, but most of them stayed put. Wind and Hyrule leaned their shoulders into Wild’s offering silent support, and Twilight was leaning back against his knees. It was the most closeness Wild had experienced since he woke up in the shrine all those months ago, and while the urge to flee was still there Wild reveled in the feeling of the others being so close.

As the moon rose overhead, the heroes slowly fell asleep. One by one their gentle snores filled their copse of trees until the only ones left awake were Twilight and Wild. Wild had stayed where he sat as the others told stories, and now found himself being used as a pillow by Wind and Hyrule. He would have thought Twilight asleep as well, but he could see the reflection of the fire in his eyes.

“How much does it bother you, really?” asked Twilight quietly. His eyes slid over to Wild.

 _“Everyone is a reflection of their experiences. If I’ve forgotten all of mine, who am I?”_ signed Wild, careful not to jostle Wind and Hyrule.

“You’ve been adventuring for months by yourself, right? Don’t those experiences count for something?”

 _“I guess they made me the person who’s travelling with you now. But I feel like I’m missing part of me,”_ signed Wild. He wasn’t sure where the honesty was coming from. Maybe the late hour was making him tired and open. Maybe it was the calming energy Twilight seemed to give off.

“Well, I like you well enough as you are,” said Twilight with a smile.

Wild returned the smile.

“Anyway, you shouldn’t dwell on what’s forgotten. You might remember on your own, but even if you don’t, you’re still you,” said Twilight. “For now, try and sleep. Who knows what black blooded monsters Hylia has waiting for us in the morning.”

Twilight turned back to the stars and Wild huddled down into his cloak. Wild’s mind still whirled with thoughts, but Wind and Hyrule’s weight against him was grounding. It wasn’t long before his eyes began to droop and sleep overtook Wild.

___________________________________________

When the others woke in the morning it was the first of many times they would find Wild, Hyrule, and Wind as a puppy pile of entwined limbs. All three were sleeping peacefully, and if the others were honest, it was rather cute. 

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first attempt at a 5+1 style story, and I'm not sure if it worked out or not. Anyways, all your kind comments on the other works in this series are keeping me going right now, thank you all so much!!
> 
> What adventures do you think the gang's going to have next?


End file.
